The world of pop was in turmoil last night as members of the recently-disbanded chart-topping group Steps admitted that they expected their fans to pay for their records, videos and other merchandise with "real money."
Fans were in a state of shock last night. Tracie, 17, of Erlam, stated: "They're just ripping their fans off who got them where they were today and splitting up for Christmas to get people to buy their rip-off album. I mean, it's a con - it's called "Gold Greatest Hits" right, so I expected it to be all new songs 'cos their greatest hits is, like, the last ones they've done, innit? And yet when I got the CD home and played it, it was all old stuff and only three new songs what they could have put on a single and that. They just don't care about their fans anymore and if they don't repay them all the money ever spent on them we'll sue them and they'll have to do bingo calling for the rest of their lives."
Quipped Lee Unnecessary-Doublebarrel of the heart-stopping funsters: "Send them all back to Siberia! I'd kick asylum seekers out of the country from the top of the White Cliffs of Dover! They're undermining everything decent in our society - whoops, sorry, I thought this was Spectator and that. Er - we love our fans and wouldn't be nothing without not them."
The Strokes were unavailable for comment but Jo Irritant from S Club 7 quipped: "well that's double the sales for us now, innit? We've got the field to ourselves now that Ere Say are down the dumper. Merry New Year to all our fans. Vote Tory."
― Marcello Carlin, Thursday, 3 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link
two years pass...